A Haunted History of Louisiana Plantations

by Cheryl H. White, W. Ryan Smith

Stories of ghosts and strange happenings at these historic Southern homes—with photos included.   Louisiana plantations evoke images of grandeur and elegance, but beyond the facade of stately homes are stories of hope and subjugation, tragedy and suffering, shame and perseverance and war and conquest.   After sixteen workers axed most of the Houmas House’s ancient oak trees, referred to as “the Gentlemen,” eight of the surviving trees eerily twisted overnight in grief over the losses wrought by a great Mississippi River flood. An illegal duel to reclaim lost honor left the grounds of Natchez’s Cherokee Plantation bloodstained, but the victim’s spirit may still wander there today. A mutilated slave girl named Chloe still haunts the halls of the Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville.   In this book, Cheryl H. White and W. Ryan Smith reveal the dark history, folklore, and lasting human cost of Louisiana plantation life.  

Genres: Nonfiction, History

131 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 25, 2017

About the author

Cheryl H. White, PhD, is a professor of history at Louisiana State University at Shreveport, where she has taught Medieval European and Christian Church history for twenty-five years. This is her sixth book title to be published with The History Press.

Reviews

[Mary Eve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cheryl Wright and Ryan Smith's A Haunted History Of Louisiana Plantations provides a glance of life in the south at some of the most famous and haunted plantations in Louisiana.

"The Louisiana big house is a physical place to reflect on how the peculiar institution once begat an entirely new culture".

"In this way they are immortal. Yet they must remain with us, seared in our memory as places of shared pain and grandeur, pageantry and merciless cruelty. Places where those unimaginable yet everyday lives were witnessed, where tangible folklore remains beyond the narrative pages."

I enjoyed reading about several of some of my favorite places to visit in my home state; some I have not ever seen. Included in the book are the famously haunted Myrtle Plantation, Houmas House, and Melrose Place. Each chapter depicts life as it was, the original owners, and the peculiar hauntings that may or may not be true. I have it on good authority that some of these tales have been woven throughout the years to lure visitors to such plantations. Either way, it gives a short description of life in the big house and events that took place. Worth a look if interested in learning more or intend to visit. I highly recommend the Myrtles Plantation. Overnight accommodations are available for many of these beautiful and slightly homes.

[Barbara Langlois · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really what I was expecting. It has some merit on information but leaves a lot to be desired.

[Diane Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book relating the histories of these Southern plantations. As far as it’s title implies, the book does not really tell the ghost stories and proclaims that the last entry doesn’t have any! However, I found it still an entertaining read, especially after visiting three of them.

[Belle Meri · Rating 2 out of 5]

While A Haunted History of Louisiana Plantations is an interesting little book, and it is little coming in at only 126 pages, you can't really say it's a "haunted" history. It's full of interesting little tidbits and brief histories of various Louisiana plantation complexes but hauntings... nary a one. There's the occasional brief comment near the end of a chapter about "there are stories told concerning ghosts..." but the authors never really tell you the ghost stories they're referring to instead moving onto the next property. Thus, this is a disappointing - and more than a bit misleading - addition to the Haunted America series.

[Laura Trachtman · Rating 2 out of 5]

One would think that a book whose title includes the word HAUNTED would actually discuss ghost stories. Sadly, this book barely touches upon the ghost stories, but does discuss the history of the houses. It’s basically a brochure for visiting plantation houses in book form.

The history was mostly interesting; but it’s not a book about haunted houses.

[James Garman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This ebook is a reference to a slate of Louisiana Plantations, including the Big House, and slave quarters, ranking from small crowded buildings to fairly comfortable, even private residences for the Black slave population. The size and comfort of the quarters was determined by the wealth of the owners as well as their willingness to invest in the well-being of those that worked for them. They often had what was called a hospital for the slaves, sometimes called "the African house".

The plantations included are the Houma Plantation (named for the Native American tribe that was there before the "white man" came, Destrehan, Oak Valley, Nottoway, Cherokee, Magnolia, San Francisco (not originally connected to the city of that name in California but to the word that mean "broke"), Myrtles and Melrose Plantations.

Some of these plantation fared better during the civil war than others, often tied to who the owner was and his or her relationship to the political authorities of the United States or the Confederancy. Many of them had periods of low times, but fortunately over the years, they have been repaired so that they are pretty much back to former glory and are worthy of a visit.

Most of them include a huge amount of ghost story, and people report seeing people in the yard that fade suddenly or who lurk in the house and scare them as they visit. There is one that has worked to deny those ghost stories because the people visiting tended to believe that Jean Lefitte had builded some of ill-gotten gains from his piracy career on the plantation so they suffered from vandalism by people trying to find the treasure.

A lot of what draws visitors, however, is the vast amount of Live Oaks, Magnolias, and Spanish Moss that provides such a unique look to Louisiana as a whole.

This book is really, in my view, more of a reference book giving some detail about the plantations in the area (I live in New Orleans so am fairly close to several) that allows this resource to be used as a sort of all for those wanting to learn some history.

[Isebella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the format of this book. Each chapter is specifically designated for a different plantation across Louisiana.

You'll find extensive history and facts about the plantations along with some amazing photography.

It is a spooky little read and it is packed with a lot of history. If you're not much of a fan of reading about any kind of history and want more of the ghost stories, I'd say skip this book and look elsewhere. Other than that, if you are a fan of plantations and their histories, then I'd definitely recommend this book.

[Janet McMillan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of information

The book reads more like a classroom book. It is interesting. If you are a visitor to the South it would be a good book to read before you go.